Review: When Spirit Calls – A Healing Odysey

Joan Diver was the first Executive Director of Boston’s Hyams Foundation, a position that she held for eighteen years, and for which she was recognized for her creative leadership in philanthropy and social justice. She and her husband Colin (Dean of Penn Law School, later to be President of Reed College) were featured in J. Anthony Lukas’ Pulitzer prize-winning book “Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the lives of Three American Families”.

This is an intensely personal story, revolving around personal growth, spiritual growth, the growth of a relationship, and the growth of a family. It is very detailed, with a good mix of family issues, personal issues (Diver suffered from intense back pain for many years), and both Joan and Colin Diver’s spiritual growth.

Even during the years that Diver served as Executive Director of the Hyams Foundation, she was following her spiritual path. Beginning with being a member of the congregation of preacher Howard Thurman (spiritual mentor to civil rights leaders), her spiritual life was important to her, and she followed where that path lead – even when she did not understand why. Speaking for those of us that grew up in the 60’s and 70’s, this was not an unusual thing. When we heard about a spiritual leader, we tried to see what they were all about. We have all been to lectures and retreats, sat on the floor listening to guru’s sitting in front of us on a raised dais. Diver’s journey is very much an East/West journey, as she visits gurus here in the U.S., in China, in India, and makes pilgrimages to Egyptian holy sites.

We are shown a world where spirit guides and unusual (out of body) experiences abound. It is all about being open to what we see, and what we hear. It is all about seeing where we are closed off as individuals, and about where we are blocking ourselves. It is about healing ourselves on all levels.

All the while Diver is dealing with a back that many times, and for long periods of time, is so excruciating that all she can do is lie down. The pain originates in the solar plexus, which is where the release and healing must occur. She deals with both Eastern and Western medicine, including past life regression and healing. Hers is an amazing story! I personally want to thank her for sharing the depth of her experiences, including the information that comes to her in her sessions, how it comes to her, the wisdom that comes from her teachers/guru’s, and in-depth detail of her surroundings/environment.

As a woman, I can appreciate her concern about how following her path might affect her marriage and her family. I loved the detail that she went into about her home(s), about social responsibilities (hers and her husband’s), and about the changes that they went through. She is transparent and honest in sharing her story (including the doubts that she has more than once along the way about whether she was doing the right thing).

Every reader will find their own version of personal growth through this story.